The Bonds of Love
by Kia33
Summary: Draco's twin brother Adrian is the star of the family, overshadowing Draco, but they have a very close relationship. What happens when they find out they're Veela and have the same mate? And Veelas can't share? Warnings: child abuse, non-con, AU, dark.
1. Chapter 1 Draco

Disclaimer: The only thing that's mine in here is the plot and Adrian; everything else belongs to Rowling. Not mine, even though I might wish it was. :D

Author's note: I've never written fanfiction before, so I'd really really really appreciate it if you could read and review, please! I need someone to tell me if what I'm doing is working or not. Also, I don't have a beta, so all mistakes are completely my own fault and I need you to point them out! :D Thanks! I hope you enjoy it!

Draco sat on the edge of his bed, shoulders hunched, as he stared at his identical twin, Adrian. "Please don't go," he said quietly, a pleading note in his voice. _I don't know what I'll do without you here... I can't hide in my room forever, not even for just these two weeks, but if you're not here, Father will... It will be so much worse._

Adrian sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He paced in front of Draco. "I have to. I told you, I made these plans weeks before school ended. I told Stephen that I'd spend the last weeks of summer at his house. I can't change them now!"

"Well, why did you make them, then? We're not even going to be together for our birthday!" Draco's tone was harsh, but unshed tears glittered in his eyes.

"Yeah, but nobody knows that – everyone thinks our birthday is June 5th instead of August 26th because Mother didn't want us to be the youngest in our class."

Draco glared at Adrian. "Don't avoid the question!" _Why doesn't he want to answer? Does he not want to spend the time with me – is he tired of me?_

"I'm sorry." He sighed, staring at the wall. "You know I don't like leaving you home without me, it's just – I just have to get away. I just have to. I can't stand it anymore. The whole reason I made these plans was because I knew I wouldn't be able to stay here all summer, and I was right. Father is going to make me so angry I'll yell at him, or even hit him, and that would be bad for us both."

Face white and hands clenched, Draco stood up. "_You _couldn't stand it anymore? _You _just had to get away? What about _me? _Did you ever think that I have it a hell of a lot worse here than you? You _know _what Father's like, and you _know _he's worse when you're not here!" _How could he use that as an excuse? It must not be the truth. _

Slowly Adrian stopped pacing. He sat down on his bed across from Draco's, putting his head in his hands. "I'm sorry." His voice was muffled. "I'm really sorry, I _am_. I'm just not as strong as you. I can't take it. I hate what he does. Every time he hits you I get so angry and full of hatred. It's like he's hitting me."

Draco laughed, an edge of hysteria in his voice. "He's not. He's hitting me, in case you haven't noticed. And as for you not being as strong as me – right. The only reason I'm still sane is because every summer I know I can look forward to the school year, where I'm away from him. If it wasn't for that, I would have given up already."

"I'm sorry."

"You _should_ be! You should be so sorry that you won't leave me!"

"I can't."

"Fine!" All of the fight seemed to leave him, and Draco collapsed back onto the bed. "I should have known that my own twin won't even try to help me, because I'm not worth it..." Burning tears slid down Draco's cheeks. _Oh, Merlin... Why won't he help me? Can't he see how much pain he's causing me? I thought he cared. But why should he care? All I ever do is fail and give in and get hurt and be weak. I can't even protect myself from Father's blows... Not that I should bother to try to protect myself. I always deserve them. Father only does what's best for me._

"No! That's not true at all! Draco-" Adrian scrambled over to Draco, leaning over the bed. He wrapped his arms tightly around Draco, cradling him.

Draco stiffened at being confined, but he didn't fight. _It is true, _thought Draco miserably. _If I was good enough, if I was worth something, then Father wouldn't have to beat me or – or – do those other things. _His mind skipped over what those things actually were, unable to deal with them.

He realized that Adrian was waiting for some sort of response. "Don't lie," he said at last, hollowly.

"I'm not lying! Have you ever known me to lie?"

"Yes."

"Not often, and especially not to you! And I would never, _never_, lie to you about something like this! I love you, Drake. You're my brother, my twin, my best friend." Adrian reached over and brushed a few of the tears off Draco's cheeks.

_His best friend? He really considers me his best friend? He cares for me as much as I care for him? No, that can't be right._ Still, a flutter of hope rose in Draco's chest, but he pushed it away. _He tells you he loves you enough that you should believe it by now. You shouldn't still be feeling almost giddy when he says that. Especially when you know that it can't be true._

"It's still so hard at times... What he does – you don't even know..." Draco shuddered.

"What don't I know?" Adrian asked, voice sharp. He straightened, his gaze intent.

_Oh, crap, _thought Draco, mind scrambling for an answer that wouldn't give him away. _I can't tell him! He – what would he think? _He decided to go with the simple answer.

Draco glanced away guiltily. "Nothing." _Please, leave it. Just drop it..._

"No, it doesn't mean 'nothing'. What are you hiding from me? Has he done something else?"

"I don't want to talk about it." He bit his lip, pointedly avoiding Adrian's stare.

Adrian glared at Draco for a moment before visibly relaxing. "Alright. I wish you would trust me more, but..." He bent back over Draco, hugging him closer. "I understand."

"No, you don't!" Draco shoved Adrian off of him, shaking. "You don't have _any _fucking clue what I'm going through, what I've already gone through, what it's like!" _I never want him to, either, but how can he possibly think that he understands? _

Silent for a moment, Adrian then nodded. "You're right. I don't understand. That was a stupid thing to say, and I'm sorry."

"Yeah, it was stupid." Draco glanced up at Adrian, eyes full of pain. "Why? Why me? Why does he do this? I know I must deserve it, b-but..."

"You don't," said Adrian. "Don't ever believe that. I don't know why he does it to you," he admitted, "because you're an amazing person. As for why he does this, any of it – it's because he's a sick, twisted person."

"No! No he's not! He's my father!" Draco scowled at Adrian. _My father! Maybe he goes overboard sometimes, but he's still my father, and he wants the best for me. I just need to try harder to please him._

"Okay, okay! Merlin!" Adrian held up his hands in defeat. "Whatever you say. Let's drop it – I don't want to argue."

"Fine."

Adrian wrapped his arms around Draco again. "I'm sorry I'm leaving."

"You sure you have to go?" Draco whispers, vulnerable.

"I can't not go now."

"I don't want you to go. I – I'm afraid."

"You'll be alright. I'll see you in just two weeks."

_Two weeks is forever, though. I don't know if we've ever been apart this long. If Adrian wants to go, however... _Draco shifted closer to Adrian. "Yeah. Thank you."

"No problem, Drake. You're my brother."

******

After dinner, theMalfoys gathered in the living room to say goodbye to Adrian. Draco hung back behind Lucius and Narcissa, arms clasped behind his back and eyes worried. Adrian stood in front of the fireplace, holding his cup of floo powder. The cup was a large alpha wolf, curled up to sleep. If anyone but Adrian tried to pick the cup up, though, the wolf would uncurl and bite them – a nasty surprise of the type common in old wizarding houses. Draco let his eyes drift to his own small clay cup that sat at the very edge of the mantle. _I wish I had a cup like Adrian's – maybe a silver Hungarian Horntail? _

"Goodbye," said Adrian, shifting his weight from one foot to the other.

"Goodbye," Lucius said. He moved forward some, inclining his head. "Be cautious in your dealings – remember, you are a Malfoy and represent us. I expect you to bring us honor and prestige this year at school." _I wish he would speak to me that way sometime – place his trust in me. But he won't. He shouldn't. I don't deserve his trust. _

"I will, Father." Adrian bowed slightly towards Lucius, accepting the responsibility.

Narcissa moved forward, arms open. She hugged Adrian carefully. "Be careful, now. Don't get yourself in trouble. I'll make sure to send some sweets and other things when you get into school. The house elves will make sure your school trunks are packed and arrive safely. Alright?"

"Yes, Mother." Smiling, Adrian kissed her cheek. "Thank you."

Hesitant, Draco stepped forward some. "I- G-goodbye." Adrian reached towards Draco, but Lucius' cane came in-between them. _No! No, please, can't you give me this one thing? Please! _Silent, though, Draco stepped back, putting his head down.

"Alright, alright, that's enough boys," he said, a bored expression on his face. "Adrian doesn't want to be late."

_Damn him! Why can't he let me have even a moment of comfort? _Draco kept his face carefully neutral, but he was sure that Adrian would be able to see right through it.

Adrian didn't even glance over at him, though. He simply grabbed a small handful of floo powder and threw it into the fireplace. Sparks flew as the fire flared green, a few landing on Draco. Adrian stepped into the fire.

"Cornfoot Manor!"

The last glimpse Draco had of his twin was him being spun in a circle by the magic before the flames flared again and he was gone. Draco bit his lip, feeling as if he'd been torn in two. Panic threatened to overwhelm him.

Looking down at his clothes, he picked off a few specks of ash from the sparks that had landed on him. He held them gently in his hand. _How sad and pathetic is it that I want to save these, that I feel like they're my last link to my brother? To Adrian? _He barely noticed Narcissa walk out.

He did notice, however, when Lucius stopped directly in front of him. Draco jumped, startled, and slowly raised his eyes to his father's. Fear flooded him at the cold, cruel, malicious glint in Lucius' eyes. _Oh Merlin, Adrian's gone, he's got free reign and he's going to hurt me hurt me oh Merlin... _"You're mine now, boy." The words were barely a whisper, but they echoed as if a shout to Draco. Draco trembled uncontrollably as Lucius laid one heavy hand on his shoulder. "You're all mine." _No no no please no oh please Adrian..._

Lucius bent down and kissed Draco. Draco froze, barely remembering to open his mouth and give his father what he wanted. Lucius' lips were hard, demanding, and cruel, bruising Draco. After almost a minute, Lucius pulled back and slapped Draco, sending him tumbling to the floor. A sneer curled the lips that just moments ago had abused Draco's own lips.

"You better be waiting for me tonight, boy. I'll be coming to visit you. You better be ready."

Draco whimpered and curled up slightly into a fetal position.

Lucius started to sweep away, then whirled back to Draco. "And if you haven't dropped them already, you better throw those ashes you picked up away. Don't think that I don't know what you're doing. He's not here to protect you now." Then, he really did leave.

Minutes later, Draco started to return to himself, his mind calming down enough to form semi-rational thoughts. _Oh no oh no, don't think about it, no no no, he's coming back tonight don't think about it – you'll be safe if you don't think about it, do what he told you... _Lucius' last words sunk into his brain, and he sat bolt upright.

_Throw away the ashes? But... they're all I have left until I see Adrian again at school. _Undecided, Draco clenched them tightly in his fist. _I can't disobey him, though... He'll know; he'll hurt me more. I don't want to give him another reason to punish me. I'm bad enough as it is._

His pride wouldn't let him give in completely, though, and he opened his fist, letting the flakes of ash drift to the floor and settle in the plush carpet.

Slowly, he climbed to his feet and walked to his room, head down and shoulders hunched. He undressed and put on pajamas before climbing into bed. It was only 7:30, but really, there was nothing else for him to do now but wait.

_I'm all alone._

******

Late that night, near midnight, Draco was still curled up in a ball in his bed when Lucius walked in. _You'd think that there would be more show or atmosphere, _he found himself thinking crazily. _Some creepy music, or his cane thudding on the ground as he walked down the hallway, or the full moon making strange shadows on the walls. _He conveniently ignored the fact that he didn't have any windows in his room. _But there isn't... _

There was the soft clicking of his father's shoes on the ground coming rapidly closer – not at a run, but not a slow, intimidating pace, either. Just the normal, everyday, I-know-what-I'm-doing-and-you-better-not-get-in-my-way pace. The door swung open with a slight creak, then shut softly behind him.

Draco trembled, frozen, as Lucius tore the covers off him.

Lucius' hand descended and grabbed his hair, yanking him straight up. His face was a mask of fury. "I thought I told you to be ready for me, boy!"

_Oh no , what did I do now? _Draco scrabbled to get his feet under him to relieve the pressure on his sore scalp.

"When I say I want you ready, I want you _ready!_" Lucius threw Draco to the ground, sending him sliding into Adrian's bed. "Get your clothes off!"

Hearing that command, Draco's mind started to shut down more fully. He knew what was coming next and he didn't want it, didn't want to deal with it, _couldn't _deal with it. Mechanically he ripped off his pajamas, leaving them lying on the floor.

Obviously not satisfied with his speed, Lucius grabbed his arm in a vice-like grip and shoved him onto the bed, delivering a few slaps and other blows along the way. Draco didn't make a sound.

Lucius kissed him violently, leaving more bruises, then descended down Draco's body, his moans and pants filling the air. At last, finally, it was over. As Lucius pulled away and left, leaving a trickle of blood and other stuff Draco couldn't think about, Draco curled back up into his ball in the middle of the bed.

He was awake the rest of the night, eyes wide, but he only really returned to himself around dawn.

_I have nowhere to go now. I don't know how I'm going to survive, _Draco thought.

_If I'll survive._

_******_

Read and review, please!!!


	2. Chapter 2 Part 1 Hermione

Disclaimer: Nope, not mine, and will never be mine, except for Adrian and the plot. I don't own it. :(

Author's note: bringITback brought up something in her review that I want to comment on. Yes, Lucius is abusive in this story, and yes, it's sick. It's supposed to be. First, it affects Draco's character and how he's going to act and respond to events, which is kind of important to the story. But I really want to show here how abuse is _abuse _for a reason. It's not right – it's wrong and disgusting and sick, whether it's physical, sexual, emotional, or any other type of abuse (and a note on sexual abuse – it's more common for girls to be sexually abused, but it's not exactly uncommon for boys to be sexually abused, even though most of society seems to forget the boys). A lot of people in society don't think about – and therefore don't do anything to stop – abuse, and I think that if that part of the story makes one person stop and think about abuse and how it affects people and how it needs to be stopped, then I've accomplished something good.

No, I'm not going to use this story to preach about abuse. :D This is a fanfic that I happen to be writing 'cause I like it and because it's fun. I'm not trying to preach to you, I just wanted to bring that up. Sermon over. ;)

I forgot to make a note last time on the timeline – this is taking place during 6th year. The fight at the end of 5th year did happen, but Lucius Malfoy was not unmasked and did not go to jail. Other than that, everything up to HBP I'm keeping.

This is actually only the first part of the chapter, but the chapter was growing a bit long and I really wanted to post something again, so I decided to split it in two. Part two to this chapter will hopefully come in a few days – maybe even tomorrow, although I doubt it. :D I'm not the fastest writer, and with school starting Wednesday, things are getting busy. Hopefully I'll be able to keep the time in-between updates relatively short, though!

Thanks so, so much to everyone who reviewed! You really made my day – I was ecstatic! Please keep it up! And in response to The Six Sexy Nerds, no, I have not read 'Breathing Underwater' by Alex Flinn. I'd never even heard of it until now. But, it sounds interesting. I'll have to check it out sometime. Thanks!

Thanks to all of the readers who didn't review, too – you made my day as well! I had no idea that I would get so many readers for my first fic. Whenever I've posted my work (original, not fanfic) on other sites, I've been lucky to get two or three views in the first week. So this just completely blew my mind. Thank you so much. Please keep reading and reviewing! I still need your comments!

******

"Hermione! Hermione!"

Hermione stood on her tiptoes , craning her neck to try and spot whoever was calling her name. "Excuse me," she said hurriedly as she almost tripped over somebody's luggage. _Geez. It seems I always forget just how crowded Platform 9 ¾ is at the beginning of the school year. _

"Hermione! Over here!"

Ignoring the jostles as people bumped into her and the shouts of glee and frustration from other students, Hermione resumed her search for the person calling for her. A grin spread over her face as she spotted a frantically waving hand from across the platform. The hand was attached to a tall, gangly red-headed boy.

Picking up her trunk with one hand and scooping up Crookshanks with the other, she shoved through the mess of people, muttering apologies to everyone she accidentally hit as she went by. "Ron! Oh, how _have _you been? It's so good to see you!" She dropped her trunk to the ground, breathless, and threw her arms around him. "Did you have a good summer? You've grown so much!"

Ron laughed, flushing slightly. "Yeah, my summer was good – could you not tell that from my letters?"

Hermione shrugged. "It's different hearing it from you in person." _It's so good to see him – he looks good, too. _She looked around, scanning the crowd. "Where's Harry?"

"I'm right here," said Harry from behind her, clapping her on the shoulder. She whirled, startled, then gave him a hug, too.

"I was wondering when you'd show up," she said, laughing. "It seems like you two always come together." _Because something bad always happens, _she thought bitterly to herself, not willing to complete the thought out loud.

"That's because most of the time we _do_," said Ron. "Seems like something always happens to Harry so he comes to my house for the end of the summer."

"Yeah, this time..." Harry glanced around, then leaned in closer and lowered his voice. "Some of Dumbledore's watchers saw some people watching me. Different people, rotating and all. They snuck me out and left a few spells up, so anybody watching would see my magical signature there, would see somebody moving around inside and stuff."

"Oh, really? Do you know what spells they used? That's really advanced magic – I think the library only has a few books on it in the Restricted Section! I wonder if I could learn how to do that?" Hermione leaned in closer, excited. _That'd be so useful to be able to do – I bet Ron and Harry would find a way to use it to cause mischief, though._

"Shush, 'Mione, of course he doesn't know. You think we all memorize spells as soon as we hear them?" Ron grinned at her.

Harry shrugged. "He's right, I don't remember what spells they used. Now, we know who sent the watchers, of course, and we even know who some of the watchers were – a certain somebody's father, for example."

Harry shot a meaningful look at the edge of the platform, where Draco Malfoy stood, a sneer on his face and arms crossed in front of him. Crabbe, Goyle, Pansy Parkinson, and several other admirers stood around him.

"Of course my summer was good – I attended several dinners and parties put on by Father for the people around here who are actually _important_. You know, the Minister of Magic , the head of the Auror Department, and many other _special guests_. Not that you would know anything about that..." Malfoy's voice floated over to them, arrogant and condescending.

_Why is he always such a absolute prat, _wondered Hermione. _And why does everyone still like him? He's got the money and the connections and the looks, but..._ _Oh, my... He's gotten much better looking over the summer – he's so tall and slender and his muscles are so toned. His eyes are such a pretty silver, too... _She shook herself. _Stop it! You're not some boy-crazy adolescent girl, so stop acting like one!_

"_My _family had the Prime Minister, the Parliament, and the President of the United States over for a vacation – they all spent a month at our house. The Prime Minister said our house was simply lovely, Draco," said Pansy, a vapid expression on her face. She put her arm around his shoulders and snuggled in to him.

Draco raised his eyebrows, looking disgusted, and shoved her off.

"Hey, Malfoy!" Ron yelled, fury filling his face. "How many of those 'special guests' were Death Eaters?"

"Ron, _don't _get into a fight with him now," whispered Hermione, tugging gently on his arm.

"Oh, right, Weasley, I forgot you have this silly little notion that my father and his friends are Death Eaters. Tell me, do you say this just so that you can get the reward money for turning a Death Eater in? Because honestly, the reward money isn't that much. It couldn't pull your family out of poverty, I can tell you that."

Ron flushed scarlet, lunging forward, only held back by Hermione and Harry grabbing his arms tighter.

"If your Father's a Death Eater, Draco, then I'm You-Know-Who's most trusted advisor," said Millicent Bulstrode, a dreamy look on her face.

"No way! I'm his most trusted advisor," said Blaise Zabini, glaring at Millicent.

Malfoy, along with Ron, Harry, and Hermione, looked at them incredulously.

"Oh, Draco, you're so _beautiful._ Are you an angel from heaven?" This came from Hannah Abbott, who came running up to Draco, peering into his face.

"Oh, please. You going to use your looks this year to go around breaking the heart of every girl in school?" Hermione asked, disgusted with him. _I bet he thinks he can sleep his way through the female half of the student body. Well, he'll find out he can't! He won't get to me, and I'll make sure he doesn't get his hands on Ginny and any of the other students if I can help it!_

"Really, Gra-" Draco stopped, staring at her. He stepped forward, mouth open and eyes wide. "Wow, Hermione. You look really pretty."

Hermione's jaw dropped as Harry and Ron stared at her along with Draco. _Did he really just say that? Did he just call me _Hermione, _not Mudblood or Granger, and did he really then _compliment _me? No, it couldn't be. He must be trying to get to me. _Nevertheless, she felt a small flush creep up her cheeks. "Oh, bugger off, Malfoy. You must be even more of a conceited, narcissistic bastard than I thought you were if you think you're going to trick me that easily."

He flinched. Right there in front of everyone, Draco Malfoy flinched. _This must be a dream, _thought Hermione, completely overwhelmed.

"I – I – oh, I didn't mean-" Draco was dead white, his eyes shining. He turned and strode off, shrugging off all of the girls who followed him, draping themselves on him. Crabbe, Goyle, and, oddly enough, Blaise Zabini followed Draco.

Staring after him, Hermione tried to figure out what had happened.

"Whoa, Hermione," said Ron, grinning exuberantly. "How did you _do _that? That was great! It was fantastic! You'll have to teach me – I promise, I'll learn faster than I ever do when you try to help me with my schoolwork! What did you _do_?"

"Yeah, what did you did?" asked Harry, frowning. "I've never seen Malfoy lose his composure so badly in public. Maybe if you can show me what you did, I'll be able to use that and get him to admit that his father's a Death Eater. I mean, I hate to do that to Adrian, but Malfoy's a git, and his father is just as bad, and I _know_ he's a Death Eater."

"I don't know what I did," admitted Hermione. "I just said the first thing that came to mind, and that happened to be it."

Ron's face fell. "Darn. I was _so _hoping I could learn how to do that. Well, anyway, that was brilliant!

Hermione caught sight of Adrian, a little ways away from them. He looked upset. _Oh, geez, I hope he didn't see the scene between us and Draco. He'd be upset – I don't know why, but he really seems to love Draco, despite Draco being such a jerk. _She noticed that his looks, too, had greatly improved, but managed to stop herself before she started getting all dreamy over them. _What is it about these two? All of the sudden they look fantastic, and everyone's making stupid comments over Draco, at least. _

"Adrian! Adrian! Do you think you could tutor me in Transfiguration this year? I spent all summer working on my Quidditch skills since I'm the Quidditch Captain of the Montrose Magpies, so I didn't have much time to study!" _Great. It seems like everyone's crazy over Adrian, too. At least that's a little better than Draco._

Frowning, Adrian stared at the girl who had said this – she was only a second year and was definitely not on any professional Quidditch team – then shook his head and scanned the crowd. He spotted them and headed over.

"Hey, Harry, have you seen Draco? I need to find him! I have to make sure he's-" He shut his mouth quickly. "Anyway, have you seen him? Please, I know you don't like him, but still..."

"He just went that way," said Hermione, feeling a bit guilty for upsetting Draco so much. _I don't like him at all, but he looked so upset._

Adrian glanced at her, smiling gratefully, and turned to run after Draco, then did a double take. "Whoa..." He stared, stunned, at Hermione. "You look fantastic! Absolutely great! Would you- No." He shook his head. "Draco," he muttered. "I have to go check on him." He turned and ran, almost seeming to flee, just glancing back once at Hermione. Hermione watched, confused, as several girls followed him.

_Okay, what's with him? Why'd he say that? And why is everyone following him?_

"Ron? Harry? Did I really change that much over summer?" Hermione asked plaintively, looking down at herself.

******

Several minutes later, laughing, Hermione shoved open the door to their compartment, bringing her stuff inside and dumping it on the floor. "Wow," she said. "I knew Fred and George were good at getting into mischief, but I'd never realized that _anyone_, even them, could cause that much mischief, even in love. They switched themselves without any of their dates noticing?"

"Yep," said Ron, grinning. "And since they each had two dates, you can imagine the trouble that caused... Especially when they started accusing the _dates _of cheating on them with their brother. Luckily, Fred and George only date people with a good sense of humor and hadn't done anything, ummm, inappropriate," Ron said, flushing, "when the girls finally figured it out, they were only angry for a short bit. Except for one of them, but she was a prude anyway. I don't know why George asked her out." _Hey, being a prude isn't _that _bad, _thought Hermione indignantly. She then shoved her indignation away. _I know Ron wasn't thinking about me._

Hermione laughed. "Well, I can't exactly say I approve of their actions, but they do make for a good story. So long as they don't do that to me – I'm afraid I wouldn't qualify as having a good sense of humor if they tried that on me."

"Yeah, but it's funny when it happens to other people," said Harry, smiling.

Reluctantly Hermione nodded. "Too true – comedy is when it happens to you, tragedy is when it happens to me. Anyways..." She shoved her trunk under the seat and sat down. "I'll have to go soon, you know, with my duties as Head Girl. You'll have to go too, Ron."

Making a face, Ron flopped down across from her, and Harry sat down next to him. "Yeah, yeah, I know. Hey, you saw Malfoy this morning, right? He must of spent all summer working on his glamour charms or something. Bloody ponce." He glared out the window.

Frowning, Hermione shook her head. "I don't know... I don't think a glamour charm would make all of the girls follow him around like that. And besides, a fair number were following Adrian, too, and I don't think he's the type of person who would spend all summer practicing glamour charms." _There has to be some explanation, though. People don't suddenly start looking like they're a model. I know they were good-looking before, but now they look like supermodels or something..._

"No, but he _is _in Ravenclaw. I bet he wouldn't have to practice his glamour charms to get them that good," pointed out Harry.

"True, but..." Hermione stopped, looking surprised. _Oh! That's it! _She saw, in her mind, an image of Fleur Delacour during the Triwizard Tournament. _They look the same – same slender build, tall, fine, pale hair... _

"But what?" Harry asked, leaning forward. "Adrian is acknowledged to be your biggest rival at school, with Draco closely following. I bet you could do a glamour charm like that, so I bet he could do one too. And it wouldn't take Draco much work."

"No, no..." She waved off Harry's words. "I wasn't thinking about that. I was thinking about Fleur. Fleur Delacour. You know, the one that gave you a kiss on the cheek for saving her little sister, Harry?" _Oh, geez. Yeah, they remember – you can tell by their vapid expressions._

She shook their shoulders. "You know what I'm talking about?"

They nodded.

"I'll have to do some research when we get to school."

******

Everyone poured into the Great Hall for the Welcoming Feast, laughing and chattering, trying to make up for all the conversations and gossip lost during the summer. "Hey, Hermione, who do you think is going to rule Transfiguration this year, you or Adrian?" Seamus asked. "Dean and I have a bet going – I'm betting on Adrian and he's betting on you."

"I don't think you should bet at all," said Hermione. "It's the wrong attitude about schoolwork." _And what if Adrian does lead in Transfiguration? I can't fail like that! What would people think? But I can't let people know that I'm that concerned about my schoolwork, either... That I'm that worried about my place in class..._

Seamus shook his head. "You're doing better, Hermione, but you still need to lighten up some." He turned back to Dean as Harry, Ron, and Hermione kept walking.

"Hey Harry," said Neville, sitting down with the three of them. "Did you hear the rumors – people are saying that You-Know-Who has agents in Hogwarts this year!"

"Frankly, I'd be surprised if he didn't," said Hermione. "It's only the logical thing to do, and we all know who to watch out for anyway, so does it really matter? We could even pass him wrong information if we know for sure who the spies are."

"Who do you think?" Ron asked.

"She suspects Malfoy, of course," said Harry. "Who wouldn't? He's the slimiest git in school, and we know he's got a Death Eater Father." _Harry seems obsessed with Malfoy – he won't let it drop, _thought Hermione worriedly._ This could get bad. He's really starting to exaggerate what we know for a fact and what we've seen of his character._

"Malfoy? I hate the prat, but come on. He's pathetic!" Ron looked longingly at the empty plate in front of him, then glanced around the Hall. "Dang, we still have to get through the Sorting..."

"I think Malfoy would be too obvious," said Hermione, "although I wouldn't rule him out. What about some of the other Slytherins? Pansy, for example? Or maybe Theodore Nott?"

Neville paused for a moment, then held up his hand as if waiting to be called on. "Millicent Bulstrode! Nobody notices her, really, and everybody thinks she's stupid, so she'd be perfect."

"That's true." Harry glanced over at the Slytherin table. "But we can't rule out the other Houses, either – not even our own." He looked suspiciously up and down the Gryffindor table.

"Harry, you surely can't think that one of us would-" Hermione looked appalled. _Nobody in Gryffindor would betray us that badly! They couldn't! They'd know that we'd all turn on them if they betrayed us!_

"I can and do. These are dark times, Hermione. We have to always be on our guard. As Prof-as Mad-Eye Moody says, 'constant vigilance!'"

Harry's words fell into near-silence, as three-quarters of the Great Hall had turned to look at the entrance way. "What? The first years aren't coming in yet, are they?"

"No," said Hermione, voice tight. "It's Malfoy and Adrian, I bet." She peered around Lavender, who was staring at the front, star-struck. Sure enough, Draco and Adrian had just walked in, talking quietly, with Crabbe and Goyle walking behind them. _Oh, crud, _she thought. _We're in for it now._

"Adrian! Adrian! Did you know that I killed a Hungarian Horntail bare-handed – without even a wand?"

"I invented a potion that makes you the most famous person in the world, Draco!"

"I won one-hundred million dollars gambling with the boss of the Mafia, and then I single-handedly took out his entire outfit, saving millions of people!"

People stood up around the Hall, yelling these ridiculous claims, and Hermione could feel the urge to yell something boastful welling up in her. _No! I will not give in! I know what's causing this, I just need to ignore it! It's purely magical! Do _not _yell anything, Hermione Granger, or you will regret it later!_

Adrian and Draco stopped and stared, surprised, at the commotion surrounding them. "Adrian, Adrian, let me carry your books for you!" Parvati Patil ran up to the front, and a lot of girls and a few boys followed her. She started to tug Adrian's books – _even I'm not carrying my books on the first day, _thought Hermione – out of his hands.

"Draco, Adrian." Professor Dumbledore stood, his tone and stance commanding silence even among the most terribly affected. "I am most sorry to ask this of you, but I think, given the circumstances, it would be best if you went to the infirmary. No, no, I do not think you are ill," he said, forestalling the words Adrian had clearly been about to say – his mouth was already half open. "I do think, however, that it would be best to have Madame Pomfrey examine you to see if she can find what is causing this effect."

Nodding, Madame Pomfrey stood, cast a small charm, and hurried down the side of the Great Hall to them. "I do think that would be wise, Headmaster," she said, standing near them. _I wonder what she cast? It must have been something to protect her from the effects of being around them – do they already know what they are? She's not acting oddly at all, though, so I must be right. It must be something to protect her._

"Thank you very much, Poppy," said Professor Dumbledore. She nodded and left, herding Draco and Adrian carefully. "Now, if everyone would settle down again, I think that the Sorting is about to begin."

Hermione watched the Malfoys leave, worried. The effects of them wore off quickly, obviously, as most of the room was already back to normal and absolutely mortified at what they'd said or done, but they could still be a serious probmlem. _We have to do something about them soon, _she thought. _I'll do all of my research tomorrow – since I know what I'm looking for, it shouldn't take too long – and then when I've got it all together in a few days, I'll go see Professor Dumbledore. Hopefully they'll have realized by then, but just in case they haven't, I'd better be ready. _

******

I hope you enjoyed it, and thanks for reading! Please, please, please review – you make me happy when you do, and when I'm happy I write more because I want to make you happy enough to review again and make me more happy... See? It's a cycle! You reviewing makes me happy which makes you happy by getting you updates faster. :D Thanks!


	3. Chapter 2 Part 2 Hermione

Author's note: So nice to see more readers and more subscribers (I'm surprised that I've gotten anyone subscribing to my story – it's awesome!) and reviewers! Keep it up, please! :D Special thanks goes to bringITback for her detailed review as to what she liked in the story. That helps me. And just to let everyone know, another scene where Lucius does something extremely inappropriate again, such as in the last scene of Chapter 1, should not appear in the story. Hopefully, that is the first and last scene of that type. :D

I'm so, so sorry for taking so long to get this out to everyone after I said in the last chapter that I thought this would be posted really soon. My most sincere apologies. My only excuse is that school started and is taking up a lot more time than I thought it would, and that I ran into a small block in it. I managed to figure out where I think the story is going to be going, which changed some of my previous idea, but hopefully for the better. Thank you for waiting so patiently. *hands out cookies to everyone*

Please review – I'm not entirely happy with this chapter, and I'd love your thoughts on it and how to make it better! I love hearing what you thought about it!

******

Hermione scanned her schedule anxiously at breakfast, looking for her free period. _Yes, right after breakfast – I'll be able to head straight for the library today, then, _she thought.

"Hey, Hermione, what free periods do you have?" Ron asked, leaning over to peer at her schedule.

"Period," she said distractedly, shoving the schedule in her bag. "Mine's right after breakfast, and seeing as I've finished breakfast, I'm heading to the library to do some research."

"'Mione – it's the first day! Come on, you don't need to be in the library already." Ron grabbed another piece of toast, slathering it with butter.

Standing and tossing her bag over her shoulder, Hermione stared at Ron. "It's about Malfoy and Adrian," she said slowly. "Don't you realize how serious this could be? We need to find out what they are, and fast. I remember someone mentioning that Fleur had the blood of a magical being, but for the life of me I _can't _remember what they said she was! It's so frustrating! I should be able to remember!"

Harry looked up from where he was sitting reading Neville's copy of The Daily Prophet. "You can't always be perfect and remember everything, Hermione."

"Well, I can try," she said defensively. _Especially now – I've got to keep things up. Don't want to fall behind, not even to Adrian. _"Anyways, if you two need me, you know where to find me. I'll see you soon!"

She hurried out of the Great Hall and up to the library_. Alright. I know that a major effect of Fleur's magical blood was sex appeal. I doubt there's going to be _that _many magical beings with sex appeal, so if I can find a list of magical beings with that ability, I should be golden. I'll recognize what she was as soon as I see it._

Dumping her bag on a table and ignoring the ensuing glare from Madame Pince, Hermione started scanning the shelves. _Magical creatures or magical beings, _she thought, pursing her lips. _Which is it going to be under? _She absentmindedly tapped the spine of one of the books. _Magical beings, of course. They're obviously not animals. _

She practically flew along the shelves, only stopping when the title of a book caught her eye. _A Comprehensive History of Magical Beings and the Wizarding World; Wizards and the 'Civilized' Races of Magical Creatures; A Muggleborn's Guide to All Magical Creatures and Beings. _Sighing, Hermione continued down the shelves, absolutely determined to find the right one. At last, she saw a promising one: _Recognizing Magical Beings by Appearance and Effects and How to Deal with these Magical Beings_.

Pulling it off the shelf, Hermione sat down at the table, breathless. She flipped through the pages until she found a quick reference chart.

_Guide to the Everyday Magical Beings_

If the being is humanoid, see 1.

If the being is non-humanoid, see 2.

1. If the being has no obvious magical effects on the Wizards around him, see a.

If the being has any obvious magical effects on the Wizards around him, see b.

a) If the being is taller than the average Wizard, see I.

If the being is about average or shorter than the average Wizard, see II.

b) If the being is fair-skinned and has light blond to white hair, it is a Veela. See page 78.

If the being is not fair-skinned, see A.

Hermione didn't bother reading any farther. She had what she needed. _Veela. Wow. I wonder if the Malfoys know this? Won't it absolutely destroy their pureblooded rants? _

_Wait. I should check and make sure that the Veela blood is there in their background. _She got up and grabbed several books on Veela off the shelves, checking them out, then hurried up to the Owlery. _I hope the Ministry's records are detailed. I'm glad they keep the records public, at least. _

Calling one of the school owls over to her, she paused for a moment. _This request should look semi-formal, at least. I don't want them ignoring it because it looks like a prank or unimportant... I should make sure I look into the Black family, too, since the Veela gene could have been passed down through them, too... _Hermione pulled out some parchment and her quill, writing a quick but neat request for copies of all the public records pertaining to the Malfoy and the Black family line for the past 300 years. _I hope it's been in the past 300 years that a Veela married in, _she thought. _I don't really want to go any farther back than that. It's going to take too much time._

Sighing, she rolled the parchment up and tied it to the owl waiting in front of her. She took a few Sickles from her bag and tied them in a pouch and tied that to the owl, too. "Alright, then. Please deliver that to the Ministry of Magic's Public Records office." The owl hooted softly and took off out the window.

Hermione stared after it for a minute, then started. _I'll have to run to make it to class on time! _She grabbed her things and took off, determined not to be late.

******

"Harry! Ron!" Hermione ran over to their chess game, completely ignoring it. "I got those records from the Ministry this morning, and I just finished going over them. Come on, let's go someplace we can talk more easily." She glanced pointedly around the room. _Too many people used to use Veela for their own advantage, mistreating and abusing them. Much as I despise Draco, I don't want to see either of them hurt like that._

"But Hermione, we're almost finished here! Look," said Ron, gesturing to the board where his knight was smashing Harry's bishop.

Hermione glared at him. "Do you, or do you not, want to find out what's going on with Adrian and Draco?"

"Don't worry, we're coming," said Harry, glancing meaningfully at Ron. "_Right?_"

Ron sighed mournfully, but stood up and shoved the board and pieces all into his bag. "Too bad we can't finish it later. That was a good game."

"Only because you were winning," said Harry sourly. "You always win."

Ron grinned. "It's nice beating you, but it's even more fun to win against _Hermione_."

Tossing her head slightly, Hermione marched away, purposefully not responding. _I have to let him have one area he can beat me in, _she thought as she led them to an empty secluded classroom.

"Alright now," she said. "Here's what I found. It's really quite fascinating, I did a lot of extra reading on it, but it looks like Draco and Adrian are mature Veela without any control whatsoever. And _that _is a dangerous thing."

Ron gaped at her. "_Veela? _No way! Veela are only girls!"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "No, Ron, you just only notice the girls. Actually, there are just as many male Veela as there are female. But, history has taken more note of the female Veela because they have a stronger effect than male Veela, mainly because guys have stronger sex drives and so notice the female Veela even more."

"H-hey," Ron spluttered. "You didn't have to be so – so blunt about it!"

_That's an interesting shade of red, _noted Hermione, raising one eyebrow. "Anyways... It looks like Narcissa is half Veela, and she passed down that half of her ancestry. She might not even know she has Veela blood, and if she doesn't know, then I doubt Adrian and Draco know."

"Okay..." Ron shrugged. "So what are we supposed to do about it?"

"Yeah," said Harry. "I mean, that's nice and all, but to be honest I don't care one way or another. Except for the fact that it destroys Lucius's rants about purebloods, since his sons aren't 'pure'."

Hermione smiled. "Well, yes, that is an upside to this, but we have to tell Dumbledore. Veela aren't intentionally harmful, but they can cause a _lot _of havoc and chaos if they're not reigned in."

Ron scowled. "Alright, alright. So we go see Dumbledore. Let's go and get this over with – I want to play another game of chess with Harry."

Rolling her eyes and smiling, Hermione headed out the door. "You know the password, right, Harry?"

"Yeah, I do." They hurried along the corridors, ignoring the few others they saw out roaming the halls.

"You know, there's one thing that seems odd about all of this," said Hermione. "Veelas are supposed to be very sensitive – it's very easy to hurt their feelings or make them feel bad or guilty," she said, frowning slightly. "But look at Malfoy. He's a cold-hearted jerk. He doesn't care about anyone or anything." _Well – he might care about Adrian. But that's it. _"And he doesn't care what people say about him."

"Does it really matter?" Ron asked. "He's a bastard. Let's leave it at that. I prefer to spend my time thinking about things more worthwhile than him."

"Me too," said Harry. "Chocolate Frog," he said to the gargoyle now in front of them. Hermione jumped not having realized that they had reached Dumbledore's office already.

They all stepped on the moving staircase and rode it up to the top. Hermione knocked nervously on the door. _Should we have come here first? Maybe we should have gotten Professor McGonagall to bring us, instead of interrupting by ourselves..._

"Come in."

The door swung open, and Hermione didn't have any more time to think. She stepped into Professor Dumbledore's office, not looking around or fidgeting. "Good evening, Professor Dumbledore," she said smoothly, forcing her voice to stay evening. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but we felt that we needed to talk to you."

"Good evening to you too, Miss Granger, " said Dumbledore, setting the small gadget that he'd been holding to one side of his desk. "And good evening to you, Mr. Weasley, Harry." His eyes twinkled merrily. "Now, what is it that you wish to talk to me about?"

"Well, we saw how everybody was acting around Adrian and Malfoy yesterday," said Hermione.

"So, naturally, you had to discover _why _this was happening, Miss Granger."

Hermione shifted uncomfortably. "Yes..." _I feel like an idiot, _she thought. _They probably already know – they are more knowledgeable than I am. _

"And exactly why do you think this is happening?" Professor Dumbledore leaned forward, looking completely absorbed in her words.

"I – well, I looked it up in the library, and then I requested some information from the Ministry of Magic, and I believe that Adrian and Malfoy are Veela who have just matured. And that's dangerous."

Professor Dumbledore leaned back, a broad smile on his face. "Congratulations. You are, indeed, correct."

Feeling at least a bit validated in her guess and her concern, Hermione glanced back at Ron. "I told you they could be dangerous."

"There is no need for concern, however. Measures are being in place as we speak to keep the students safe, and Draco and Adrian will be told of everything very shortly."

"Measures? What type of measures?" asked Harry. Hermione nodded. _I hope they're strong. I don't feel like succumbing to either of their spells. _

"A dampening spell has been put around the school. It will keep their – natural abilities, should we say? – from affecting the students too strongly, and both Draco and Adrian will be taking extra lessons in the evenings to learn to control themselves. Also, all of the teachers will be on high alert around them, ready to step in if things get out of hand."

Hermione nodded, then something occurred to her. "Professor – I read something in one of the books. It said that – that Veela have mates. Is that true?"

The sparkle in Dumbledore's eyes died, and he sighed heavily. "Yes, Miss Granger, I am afraid that that is true."

"But – that's wonderful," said Ron, looking confused. "They can just find their mates and leave the rest of us alone!"

"I'm afraid it's not as simple as that," said Professor Dumbledore. "The problem is that they are _identical _twins. They will have the same mate, and there has never before been twins who have been able to share their mate, even if they want to." _Sharing? That's disgusting, _thought Hermione. _Why would anyone want to do that?_

"What happens to them if they can't share?" Harry asked, stepping closer. "I don't want anything to happen to Adrian; he's a nice guy."

"I don't want anything to happen to them either, but unfortunately I can't do anything. Veela twins are quite tragic. Inevitably, one of them will die, either murdered by the other, through suicide, or by... basically, pining away for their mate, if their mate ignores them or has chosen the other."

Hermione gasped, while Ron and Harry stared at Professor Dumbledore. "There's – there's no other option?" Hermione asked quietly, shock still radiating through her at the knowledge that one of these people was going to die. _Losing either of them would be losing something important. Adrian's my competitor, and he's really nice – I _do _like him, _she admitted to herself. _And while I despise Draco, he's always been there, always been someone you could count on to cause you problems and get in your way. Something would feel wrong without having to worry about him stopping you._

"No, unfortunately." Professor Dumbledore stared past them. "I think it's time that you three leave," he said at last. "There's nothing more to be said on the subject."

Slowly, they stepped onto the staircase and headed downstairs.

"That's terrible," said Hermione. "I almost feel bad for Draco..."

Ron stared at her. "Draco? What, now you feel sorry for him and it's time for a pity fest? Nah! We just have to make sure that Adrian wins their mate, not Malfoy."

Harry sighed. "I don't want Malfoy to die, but if it comes down to one or the other, I'm going to go with Adrian. I'll help him."

Biting her lip, Hermione followed them back to the common room. _I wish I could do something to help, but I'm sure that if anything could be done, somebody would already have found it._

_I wish I could help. _

******

DiamondEnchantress: I'm glad you like the opening. As to how I'm going to make the pairing work... well, you'll just have to hold on and see, won't you? I couldn't very well give something that important away right at the beginning! But, I will say – they're Veela. And Veela are jealous. Problems ensue.

Please review – it makes me happy! :D


	4. Chapter 3 Adrian

Disclaimer: Not mine, not mine, not mine. Last time I checked I wasn't even from the right continent to be JR, so... yeah. I don't own the characters (other than Adrian) or the places.

Author's note: I'm so very sorry for it being so long since I last posted an update! My sincere apologies! I don't even have a proper excuse – just that things have been very busy and crazy. I did participate in NaNoWriMo (that's National Novel Writing Month) in November, and won, so that's my excuse for November, but I have nothing really for the other months. Feel free to yell at me – just make sure you review while you're yelling. Thanks! :D

* * * * *

Adrian wrapped his arms around his legs and stared pensively at Draco, who was sitting across from him, on the other bed. "How are you doing, Draco? Are you okay?"

Draco shrugged. "As good as can be expected, I guess. I want to know what's going on, though. All Dumbledore did was tell us that there were some 'problems' and that we had to stay in here for our 'safety'. What in the world is that supposed to mean?"

"I have no idea," admitted Adrian. "That worries me – I don't like not knowing what's going on."

He frowned, noticing that Draco looked more pale and worn than usual. Looking closely, he saw a bruise spread across the top of Draco's shoulder. It was almost completely covered by Draco's shirt. _Oh, God, I hope he's alright... I shouldn't have left him alone with Father for the last two weeks of summer vacation, I shouldn't have... It was wrong of me, and Draco paid the price._

"How – how were you while I was gone? I'm so sorry that I left."

Scowling, Draco looked away. He shrugged. "Fine, I guess. Things were just like normal – he beat me and-"

"What?" Adrian leaned forward, reaching out to Draco. "You know you can tell me anything." _No matter what Father does, I'll always be here for you. I've promised myself that before – now if only I could keep the promise instead of letting my own feelings and fears get in the way._

Draco laughed, a bitter sound that seemed to crack the silence. "No, I can't. I wish I could, believe me, but..." He shook his head.

_What's he keeping from me? Did Father do something... worse? How could anything be worse than what he's already been put through? _Images flashed through Adrian's head, each one worse than the last. _No. Even Father wouldn't do anything like those, would he? Of course not. Even he isn't that bad._

"Drake, please. I won't laugh at you, and I won't yell or anything. I won't hurt you. I love you and I _just want to help_."

"I can't tell you."

"Please, let me in, Drake. I don't like having secrets from each other."

"No. You're just making it worse."

Adrian saw that Draco's eyes were wet. _If I push anymore, he'll start crying. I don't want that..._ He got off the bed and crawled onto Draco's.

"Alright. I'm sorry." Holding out his arms, Adrian waited for Draco to come into them, to heal the breach that had just opened between them. "I don't want to fight."

Draco glanced over at Adrian. "No." He scooted farther away from Adrian.

Stung, Adrian went back to his bed, crossing his arms in front of him. _He's never done that before. Never pushed me away like that. _He felt a slight burning at the back of his eyes, but resolutely pushed it away. _I'm not going to cry. _

As he sat there, alone, not even looking over at Draco, Adrian could feel the breach between them grow slightly wider. And he didn't know what to do to close it.

* * * * * *

Several hours later, Adrian and Draco had barely budged when there was a quiet knock on their door._ He's not going to answer, _realized Adrian after several long, silent seconds. "Come in," said Adrian.

The door opened to reveal Professor Dumbledore. "Good evening, Draco, Adrian," he said, nodding to each in turn. "I trust that you have found the lodgings adequate?"

Adrian nodded, vaguely realizing that Draco still wasn't responding. _I hope he really is okay... I didn't mean for him to get this upset. I didn't really mean for him to get upset at all._

"Well, then, if you are satisfied with your room up to this point, then I think it is past time that we talked." Professor Dumbledore stepped in and shut the door behind him before conjuring a soft chair for himself and settling down.

"Draco." Professor Dumbledore's voice was kind but firm. "I will need your attention for this."

"Yes, sir." Draco turned himself so that he was staring at Dumbledore, but Adrian could tell that he wasn't really _there _– he was more focused on something inside of him. Something horrible inside of him.

Professor Dumbledore sighed. "Adrian, I will have to request your help. When Draco returns to himself, please tell him everything I have told you."

"I'm here," said Draco sharply, eyes glinting. "You don't need him to tell me anything."

A small smile crossed Dumbledore's face. "Good, then. Do either of you have any idea why I had to put you here?"

"Of course not," said Draco, straightening. "May I assume that you are about to tell us?"

"Yes."

_Please, don't let it be anything bad, _thought Adrian worriedly, a feeling of dread settling on him. _Let it be something simple... like... like... I don't know. We're sick and need a potion? _But he knew that that didn't make any sense; if it had been something that simple it would have been finished already.

"There is no easy way to say this, but both of you are Veela."

Draco's jaw dropped, but Adrian's mind started buzzing away, categorizing everything. _Traits of a Veela – possessive, emotionally volatile, sensitive physically and emotionally, hold grudges, need physical contact, stunningly beautiful, and, of course, a mate. We're both possessive, we both tend to swing wildly in our emotions, we're very sensitive to heat or touch, we both hold grudges, we get touchy if we don't have physical contact... I guess we'd be considered beautiful. And as for a mate... well, I don't know. But if we fit all of the other characteristics... _

"That – that can't be," said Draco. "It can't be! We're pureblooded!"

Professor Dumbledore raised an eyebrow. He held out several papers. "These are the records from the Ministry itself. Let me assure you, you are both Veela."

Adrian took the papers and scanned them.

"Well? Is it true?" Draco stared intently at Adrian, hands white from grasping each other so hard.

Adrian nodded reluctantly. "This does all seem to make sense. Of course, there's always the chance that the papers were forged, but... This seems to all be in order."

"No – it can't be! I'm a pureblood! I can't be... be..." Draco trailed off, eyes wide.

"I'm glad you've accepted it so well, Adrian," said Professor Dumbledore, "and I'm sure that Draco will accept it just as well with a bit of time. Now, there are several problems that come with this. You two know what a Veela is, being raised in a pureblood family. You will be – and already are – attracting the attention of just about every female and some males in the school. This is because of your magic and the fact that you are both now incredibly attractive. I can't do anything about how you look, but you will be having lessons in the evening from your Head of House, Professor Snape, as well as me. I will be teaching you how to control your magic directly, while Professor Snape will be helping you to control your emotions, which will help keep your magic from escaping you because of your emotions – as I'm sure you both remember, most accidents caused by Veelas are because their emotions got out of hand."

Adrian nodded. _Well... this makes sense. Oh, no. How is Father going to take this? Does he know yet? _

"Neither of you will start class for another week. We want to allow you time to adjust to this information and gain some control of your abilities. On Monday, Wednesday, and Friday this week you will work with me from seven in the evening until ten, while on Tuesday and Thursday you will work with Professor Snape from seven until ten. When those lessons have finished, we will set up more times to work with you based on how you are progressing."

"We'll be working with you together? At the same time?" Draco looked up at Professor Dumbledore.

"Yes, for at least the next week." He looked at them gravely. "I trust that neither of you will abuse your abilities as Veela. If you do, I am afraid that I will have to contact the Ministry. I'm sure that we won't have to worry about that, though."

"Also, dampeners are being placed around the school at this very moment to keep your magic from breaking loose. If something should happen, less harm will be caused."

"Does Father know about this?" Draco asked.

Adrian could hear the undercurrent of fear and worry in his voice and ached to reach out to him. _Even if he does, I'll do my best not to let him touch you. It will be alright. I promise._

"We owled him right after supper in the Great Hall. He should know soon."

Adrian saw Draco's flinch and reached out a hand to him, across the space between their beds. This time Draco took it and held on, tightly.

Professor Dumbledore eyed their linked hands, but said nothing. "Now, onto the most difficult part of this." He sighed deeply. "I'm sure that you two both know that Veelas have mates."

Adrian nodded, mute. _That's supposed to be one of the best and worst things about being Veela – the overpowering love. But I don't want a mate! I love Mandy, she's the greatest girlfriend anybody could want. I don't want somebody else. How am I going to tell her about all of this?_

"When they come into their own at age 17, Veelas start looking for a mate. When they finally run into somebody who fits them, their magic latches on to that person. That person becomes their mate. Their mate is everything to them; they will never love another person. Their mate can make them the happiest or the most miserable person in the world with just a few single words. For twins, though... Identical twins have the same mate, because they are identical. And... Veelas don't share."

The blood drained from Draco's face and he turned away from Professor Dumbledore, so he was staring at Adrian. "This doesn't mean anything. It can't mean anything, it can't. We're brothers, we're twins, we share, this will be fine even if we are Veela, right?"

_What do I say to that? I don't know enough about Veela and twins to answer him, help him. _Instead Adrian pulled slipped over next to Draco and held him.

"No, I'm sorry, I can't say that, Mr. Malfoy. I honestly can't."

"What do you mean?" Adrian asked sharply.

"There has never been a pair of identical Veela twins in the past that has survived. One or the other of the twins has either committed suicide or pined away because their mate has chosen the other twin, or has murdered the other twin so that they could be with their mate. I know of not a single instance where both twins have survived."

_What?!? No! That won't happen – he's my brother, Draco, my twin. I love him. I protect him. I won't ever hurt him, and I won't let him be hurt, either. I won't. I can't._

Draco didn't say anything. His entire body tensed, but slowly relaxed until it was limp in Adrian's arms.

"No. That's not going to happen to us," said Adrian, forcing his voice to be steady and sure. "We're different. We're going to change that."

Professor Dumbledore raised one eyebrow. "I hope that you can, Adrian. If you can think of anything to try, tell any of the teachers, and we will all do our best to help you. My best advice, though, would be to hope that you don't find your mate for a while. A long, long while. Sadly, that is the only thing that has worked in the past."

"Please... Please go," said Draco, voice barely a whisper. "We can talk to you later."

"Of course. If that is what you wish." Professor Dumbledore stood and walked to the door, waving his wand to make the soft chair disappear. "If you ever need me, my office can be reached by the gargoyle on the third floor. Simply say 'sugar quill', and the gargoyle should slide aside, revealing the passage up to my office. Please come if you need anything at all."

"We will," said Adrian. "Thank you. Please go now, though."

With a nod, Professor Dumbledore slipped out the door, shutting it quietly behind him.

There was complete silence for several hours, as Adrian and Draco held each other. _This can't be happening. It can't be. I don't want it..._

* * * * * *

"You're going to win, of course." Draco pulled out of Adrian's arms. "You'll get the girl while I waste away or kill myself over in the corner... Or you'll kill me. Either way, it ends up the same. Me dead and you with the love of our lives."

"Don't talk like that!" Adrian glared at Draco. "That's not going to happen! I would never do that to you!" A niggling doubt started to wriggle into the back of his mind. _The most perfect love anywhere – I love Mandy, but what if the love was even stronger? Would I betray Draco? Can I trust myself?_

"It doesn't matter if you would do it to me! It always happens! You get everything good, because you're better than me. I don't even think we're twins – you're too good, and I'm too bad." Draco snorted. "It's better if you win. That way our mate – whoever it is – gets someone worthwhile. I don't want to ruin their life."

Adrian stood up, scowling. "Do you really think so little of me, that I would leave you like that? That I would desert you for somebody I've never met? And do you not want to be my brother so much that you would say that you don't think we're _twins_? What's _wrong_ with you?"

"Wrong with me? Everything! Everything is wrong with me! There is _nothing _right with me, and there never will be!

"You idiot!" Adrian screamed, tears burning and a few dripping down his cheeks. "Do you really think so little of yourself?"

"Why shouldn't I? I have nothing to make me feel otherwise!"

"You have _me!_" Adrian stormed across the room. He could feel the rage bubbling up in him, burying the hurt of the what Draco was saying for a few moments. _Why is he being so cruel? I just want us to be brothers, to be together, to be _happy. _Is that too much to ask?_ _Apparently so – maybe he doesn't care as much as I thought he did. _

"_So what?!? _It's not like you actually do your best to help and protect me – you _left _me alone with Father for a whole _two weeks!"_

"You know what?" Adrian's voice dropped down low, tightly controlled and sharp. "Maybe that was a good thing. Maybe I'm _glad _I left you there, because you sure as hell aren't giving me any reason to feel otherwise right now!"

Draco stood up, his face contorted. "You _dare-"_ Suddenly, he changed, his form shifting from one instant to the next. Instead of Draco in front of Adrian, there was a massive bird with a sharp, cruel beak to match its size and large wings.

_What in the name of-? _Adrian stared at the bird, absolutely stunned, as its wings beat once, twice, three times. Then the bird raised one foreleg, and, with a loud caw, shot a ball of fire towards Adrian. Adrian dove to one side, reaching for his wand. _How do I protect himself against this??? _He tried to ransack his brain for everything he knew about Veela's bird forms while keeping a wary eye on bird-Draco, who was turning towards Adrian again.

"Draco? Draco, please, can you hear me? Understand me? I'm sorry, really I'm so sorry for what I said. Please change back. Please."

The bird-Draco beat its wings again, and Adrian raised his wand, preparing to cast _Protego, _hoping that that would do something. _I can't attack him – not now, not after what I said. That would just make things worse._

The wings beat again, and again, and then, suddenly, it was Draco standing in front of Adrian again. Adrian met Draco's shocked stare with his own. He watched warily as Draco sank back slowly onto the bed. A look of complete horror crossed Draco's face.

"I just – did I really – oh my god – I" Draco turned his face away from Adrian, curling up on the bed. "S-sorry, so sorry, I am so sorry, please believe me – I'm sorry, sorry Adrian, oh _god_..." His voice was muffled.

"Draco?" Adrian stood up. _He sounds so hurt, so broken. I just want to hold him now. But – is this all a ruse? How do I know he's not going to turn on me if I get close to him? He just threw a fireball at me..._

"Adrian, I'm sorry, please, forgive me, I'm sorry, I-"

Adrian make a split-second decision. "Shut up." He saw the shudder wrack Draco's body, and he ached for him. "_I'm _sorry." He moved closer to Draco, sitting down on the bed beside him. He placed one hand on Draco's shoulder, softly.

"After what I said – you had every right to be angry with me. I don't blame you. Not one bit."

"But I-"

_"Are you listening to me?_ I said that I don't blame you. There is _nothing _to forgive. It was a mistake, caused by both of us, and the majority of it was my fault. If you _must _have my forgiveness, then I need yours just as badly." Adrian paused. _I hope this helps. Please, please let this help. _"I love you, Draco. Very much."

Slowly, Draco's sobs died down. "I _am _sorry," he whispered. "I threw a fireball at you. I never want to hurt you, Adrian. Never."

"I know." Adrian reached down and lifted Draco up, bracing him against himself. "I believe you."

"Thank you."

"I hate what this is doing to us," said Draco suddenly, after a long pause.

"So do I," Adrian admitted. "But what can we do about it?"

"Make a pact," said Draco, instantly. "A pact that we'll always be brothers and friends." Adrian looked down at him, seeing a determined gleam in his eye.

"A pact in blood? A full-blown magical pact? That's serious. If we can't keep it together, we'll both die. Do you really want to do that?"

Draco paused, the light in his eyes dimming for a minute. "No. I don't want us both to die. But, we can still just make a private pact here. An oath to each other."

Hesitating, Adrian saw the pain in Draco's eyes. _How can I refuse him? He wants this – he needs it. And I need to take care of him_. "Alright. If that's what you want, I will do it."

"Thank you," said Draco again. He turned to face Adrian front on. "I don't particularly care about ceremony with this, so..." He reached out and grasped Adrian's hand.

"I swear that no matter what happens, I will always be your brother and friend. I won't let the fact that we are Veela and share a mate come between us." He stopped, hesitated, then shut his mouth completely. Nodding to Adrian, he clasped their hands tighter.

"I swear that no matter what happens," said Adrian, "I will always be your brother and friend. I won't let the fact that we are Veela and share a mate come between us."

There was a moment of silence between them, and then Draco leaned forward and grabbed Adrian in a hug. "Thank you. I can't say it enough for everything you've done for me. Thank you so, so much."

"I love you," said Adrian. "Of course I'll do everything I can for you." In the back of his mind, though, was that nagging doubt – _will I be able to keep my oath to him? What will happen when we find our mate?_

* * * * * *

Please review! It's much appreciated!


	5. Chapter 4 Part 1 Draco

Disclaimer: I don't own 'em. In case you haven't noticed by now, the only things in this story that are mine are Adrian and the plot. Everything else is property of JKR.

AN: I'm sorry I'm so slow at writing this! I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry! *hands cookies out* Please forgive me, and take the cookies as part of my apology! And, please, review – one of the only things that's kept me writing this is knowing that I have people reading this and loving it. I like the story, it just seems like I don't have enough time to write recently, so I need all of the reviews and encouragement I can get. For all those who have posted wonderful reviews before, thank you very much. You're amazing!

* * * * * *

Taking a deep breath, Draco held his bag closer to himself and straightened his back. He raised his chin. _I can do this. It's simply been a week, and I've had those lessons with Professor Snape and Dumbledore, so I know I can control myself... All I have to do is go in there, and... and pretend. Act. Just like always. _Fixing a smirk on his face, he strode into Potions.

"Draco, Draco!" Pansy shrieked as she threw herself at him. "How _are _you? What's _happened_? Why did you have to leave?" She wrapped her arms around Draco's neck and planted a wet kiss directly on Draco's lips.

_This is just an effect of the Veela, _Draco told himself. _Really. She wasn't like this before... Well, yes she mostly was, but... I can't blame her for it and get angry with her..._ He reached up and grabbed her arm, peeling it off his neck. He twisted away from her, dumping his bag next to his seat at the same time.

"Yeah, what happened?" Goyle asked, looking confused. A small crowd of Slytherins – Blaise, Goyle, Crabbe, Pansy – gathered around him.

"I'll tell you, I'll tell you, don't worry," said Draco, laughing slightly. He bent over and started retrieving his things from his bag. He set them down on his desk, carefully, one at a time. "It's very interesting. _Apparently, _I'm part Veela."

"Huh?" Crabbe stared at Draco.

"A _Veela!_" Pansy giggled. "One of those magical beings, right?"

"Of course," said Draco, smirking. "A Malfoy certainly wouldn't be part magical _creature_, would he?" He shuddered slightly. "Not like that giant oaf, Hagrid..."

"Of course not," said Pansy, swinging herself around Draco again and draping her arm over him. She snuggled in to him, leaning her head on his shoulder. Draco stiffened, barely suppressing the urge to throw her off of him. _No, leave her be. What would Father say? What does he say to Adrian? "Cultivate your friend, Adrian. Later, they may be useful to you..." _

"Anyway, there are definitely perks that come of being a Veela. For instance... I am extraordinarily handsome, in case you didn't notice it before." Draco smirked. "And people just can't resist me." He tilted his head towards Pansy, reaching out one hand and twining his fingers through her hair.

Blaise laughed. "Not that that's ever been a problem for you, not with your family," he said.

"Any other special abilities?" Pansy asked. _I bet you're just trying to find out so you can use me for my abilities, _Draco thought. _Yeah, you're infatuated right now, but it's all lust. _

Draco shrugged. "Well, I haven't had a chance to do a lot of research yet, of course, but I seem to be able to throw fire around, and I can turn into a bird. It's going to be so amazing to be able to fly..." Draco trailed off, staring into space. _To be free. To be really, truly free, able to soar above all my problems and forget about them. To never have to come down... Well, I'd have to come down occasionally, but if I could just soar above everything, just for a little while._

A commotion outside startled him, and he looked up. Ron, Harry, and Hermione entered the room, laughing. Draco stared at them, slightly envious and slightly angry.

Pansy leaned over him, imposing herself between them. "Well, I think it's great," she said, her voice lowering as she smiled in what she must have thought was a seductive way. "You being a Veela and all... it makes you so _handsome..._"

"Like I wasn't before?" Draco asked, lounging in his chair.

"He's boasting already," said Ron, his voice loud and designed to carry. "Typical Draco."

"I wouldn't see why he would want to boast," said Hermione, sniffing as she put her books down. "It's not like being a Veela is a _good _thing!"

"Why would you think that?" Draco asked, leaning around Pansy to stare at Hermione. He stopped short, staring at her. _Her hair... it's so silky and smooth looking... _He longed to run his hands through it. _And her skin is so white and creamy, like fresh milk... Look at those eyes, too, I never realized how deep and chocolate they were; I feel like I could fall into them. _

"For _obvious _reasons, Malfoy," said Hermione, rolling her eyes. "First of all, your _mate_..."

She continued, but Draco was too transfixed by her voice to actually understand what she was saying. _It's so sweet, so rich, like a bell ringing in a new year... _He sat listening to the rise and fall of her voice, the dips and the turns her voice took. Not even thinking, he brushed aside Pansy, pushing her to the side without a second glance.

"...not like anyone will ever want _him _as a mate," said Ron, interrupting Hermione's speech and Draco's reverie. "Not the ferret!" He laughed derisively, causing a blush to rise in Draco's cheeks. _He's right, too... Nobody would want me, not compared to Adrian..._

A sudden urge caught him by surprise. "Do you agree, Hermione?" He leaned forward, eager and hopeful and afraid all at once.

"Well, I wouldn't exactly say that, it's just that..." Hermione trailed off, glaring at Ron. "I mean, you're not exactly _nice_, Draco, so it would be difficult for somebody..."

Draco felt like he'd been slapped. He turned away from Hermione, back towards Pansy and the rest of the Slytherins, all who were staring at him. "Oh," he said intelligently. He reached for something to do, not seeing anything. Blindly he grasped his potions ingredients and started rearranging them into obsessively neat piles. _I – does she really think that? Even her, a _noble _Gryffindor? She must hate me... _

Suddenly he realized that Pansy was staring at him like he'd grown two heads. _Oh, right, too different. Need to be cold. Nasty. Cruel. _An ache started to grow in his stomach, matching the one that had already started in the back of his throat.

"Well, it's good to know what you think," he said lamely. _Not good enough. That's not going to cut it. _"The opinion of a Mudblood is _always_ important," he said, sneering. _Better. _But the words did nothing to help fill the void that seemed to be growing in him.

"Mr. Malfoy, kindly keep your personal prejudices to yourself, as we are in school," said Professor Snape, stalking into the room. He paused by Draco, but Draco refused to look up at him. He knew that Snape would see how upset he was if he looked up, and since Professor Snape had been giving him lessons on controlling his emotions over the past week, he didn't think Snape would like to see him so upset. _He'll be angry that I haven't learned my lesson as well as I should. _

"Please see me after class, Draco," said Professor Snape, laying one hand on Draco's shoulder for a second, giving a bit of comfort and, more importantly, the touch that helps stabilize Veela emotions.

"Yes, sir," said Draco, still refusing to look up.

"Very well, then. Let's begin!" Professor Snape stalked up to the front of the room, his robes swirling around him. "First, we will..."

Draco bent his head to his work, losing himself in it completely, silent for the rest of class.

* * * * * *

After class ended, Draco packed up his supplies slowly, hoping that his admirers would leave him alone. All of them did leave, except Pansy.

"Hurry up, Draco, you don't want to be late," said Pansy, leaning over him.

"I'll be fine," Draco said. "Go on without me, alright?" _Please, please go. I need to talk to Professor Snape, and I want it to be private. If he's going to yell at me about my lack of control, I don't want them anywhere around._

"But Draco," whined Pansy, tugging lightly on his arm.

"I said to _go_," said Draco, putting some force in his voice.

"Fine. Be that way." Pansy pouted as she stalked out the door, but Draco saw her throw one last desperate glance at him before she left.

Relieved that she was finally gone, Draco straightened with a sigh. He walked up to the front of the room, where Professor Snape was sitting grading papers. "You wanted to see me, sir?"

Snape marked the top of the paper with a D, then laid down his quill and turned to Draco. "Of course. I realized that I forgot to mention one of the most important things to you before you left our last meeting." He stood up and walked around his desk to Draco. "You know that you can come to me for anything, right?" His face softened a bit.

"Of – of course," said Draco, surprised. _Why is he being nice to me? I thought he'd be angry-_

"I will do my best to help you," continued Professor Snape, interrupting Draco's thoughts. He stared down at Draco, and Draco shifted uncomfortably. _It feels like he can see right through me... _

"Now," Snape said, his face stern and forbidding once again. "Do you remember some of the relaxation techniques I gave you at our last meeting?"

"Yes," said Draco. He listed a few of them. "The idea is simply to keep control of my emotions, to not let myself get worked up as easily," he concluded. "That way I don't... don't throw a fireball, or – or something."

"Very good," said Professor Snape. "It looks like you may have a decent grasp of those. Now..." He hesitated. "This is very personal, and I understand if you don't wish to answer it, but of course I would prefer an answer. It will help things go more smoothly." There was a slight pause. "Do you have any idea who your mate is?"

Draco frowned. "No, of course not. I mean, it's not that likely that I'd find a mate yet, is it? How would I even recognize my mate?" An image of Hermione floats behind his eyes, but he shakes his head slightly. _It couldn't be her. I've known her for years, and I've never before been even the slightest bit attracted to her before. Besides, she's a – a Mudblood._

Snape scowled. "It appears that Headmaster Dumbledore did not see fit to enlighten you as to this aspect of being a... Veela. Sit down, please."

Automatically, Draco responded to the tone in Snape's voice. "What is it? Should I have found my mate by now?" A knot formed in the pit of his stomach. _Will we find her already? Do Adrian and I have so little time left together? Please, no. No no no no no..._

Professor Snape sighed. "Yes, you will find a mate very quickly. A Veela's magic latches on to the first person suitable for them that they see."

_Oh, good, then it can't be Hermione, _thought Draco happily, ignoring the slight twinge of pain in his heart. _She's a Mudblood, and that wouldn't be at all suitable._

"This person must be a match for you in your magic and in your personality," continued Snape, "but she – or he, the magic does not take gender into account – does _not _have to necessarily be a match for you physically or socially. For example, someone such as... Harry Potter, or Neville Longbottom, could be your mate, if the magic sees them as a good match for you." His lip curled, showing his obvious distaste for either of those choices. "However, I doubt that _Longbottom _would ever be your match, as he is the next thing to a Squib."

Draco simply stared at Professor Snape, horror filling him. "How will I know?" he asked very faintly.

"Everything about them will seem right," said Professor Snape. "They will seem wonderful, amazing. You won't be able to get them out of your head. They will smell delicious to you, they will look perfect, you will think that everything they do is perfect and fantastic. Their voice will sound great. A word from them could put you on top of the moon or down into the pits of despair within seconds. Do you understand?" Somehow, Snape's voice had managed to stay dispassionate throughout that entire speech.

Draco barely had to think for a minute, as Hermione's image floated to the front of his mind again. He turned a pasty white. _Oh, God, oh no no no... Father will kill me! He'll never forgive me for this! Not that it will matter, since Adrian will end up with her and I'll be dead. Oh, God, that's going to be a relief. _The idea of Hermione with anyone else, _especially _Adrian, made him horribly and unaccountably furious and jealous and despairing. _How could I not have caught this sooner? How could I not have noticed? Oh, no, no, no!_

"Draco? Draco, are you alright?" Professor Snape leaned forward, his eyes glittering slightly.

"I... I think I know who my mate is," he said even more faintly than the last sentence he spoke. "Oh, no!" He stood up suddenly, eyes fixed in the distance. "Oh, no," he repeated, whirling around towards the doorway. He bolted out of the room, racing towards the only person he felt could help things at all. _Adrian. I have to get to Adrian. He'll fix everything. _

* * *

Review! Help keep my spirits up so I'll keep writing and posting this!

Thanks!

Oh, and by the way – how do you think Adrian is going to react? Do you think Snape knows who Draco's mate is, or is he just going to guess at who Draco's mate is? If he's just guessing, who do you think Professor Snape is going to think is Draco and Adrian's mate?


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: Not mine, of course, it all belongs to the wonderful JK Rowling.

Author's Note: Yeah, I know. You thought this story was abandoned. So did I, to tell you the truth. I wanted to write more but just… it wasn't flowing at all. I couldn't write the next scene, though I tried about a dozen times. Then… something clicked. I changed the scene, and all of the sudden it started to flow better. It's been long enough that I don't know if I'll keep writing or be able to focus on it, but I know that I have people out there that want to read more. So… whenever I get something done, I'll post it, even if it's just a scene, even if it's very short. Later I can go back and organize it more coherently and cohesively and revise it, if I do finish it (and right now that is an if, honestly). I'm completely abandoning trying to switch viewpoints evenly – it'll switch when the story wants it. It might not switch at all. I don't know. I might have more up in a week. It might be months before anything else gets put up. I'm sorry about that. But I wanted to get you something, at least, because you people have been crazy enough to stay with the story this long (and even yell at me for not posting!).

Draco sprinted down the hallway, glad that most people were in class by then so he wouldn't have to look at them or worry about them seeing him so upset. _Adrian. He'll fix this, I know he will, he knows everything... _Even as the blood pounded in Draco's ears and his heart raced with panic, however, he couldn't keep his mind from drifting back to Hermione. _Of course she's my mate, _he thought. _She's so beautiful, and her voice is better than a song, and her radiant eyes, especially when she smiles... _He was jolted back to reality when he realized that she'd never smiled at him before. _And she probably never will... not me... _His heart plummeted, and he was in the middle of a crushing depression. He slowed to a walk, fighting off tears.

_She hates me, it's obvious, and of course she likes Adrian because he's so smart and he's _nice, _unlike me... _Suddenly, Draco realized that he couldn't tell Adrian what was going on, and that he knew who their mate was. _As soon as I tell him, he's going to get her and leave me behind. I know we made a pact, but that's not going to matter - who wouldn't give up me in a heartbeat, especially if they were to get someone as incredible as her? And he should get her, he's much more deserving of her, and I know that she hates me. _A surge of jealousy rose in Draco, and he clenched his fists. _It doesn't matter that he deserves her, he can't have her! She's MINE! _

He almost stumbled into the wall, so blinded by his anger and jealousy and depression that he wasn't watching where he was going. Furious - at himself, at Adrian, at the professors for not knowing how to fix the situation - Draco whirled and slammed his fist into the wall, ignoring the crack and the spike of pain as one of his knuckles broke and the skin scraped off his hand. He paused, panting, before slumping down against the wall and putting his head in his hands. _I can't tell Adrian. As soon as he knows, he'll get her and I won't have her, I won't have my beautiful Hermione, and he'll be gone - he'll hate me, won't want me around anymore, he'll let Father do whatever he wants because Adrian won't care, and why should he? I can't tell him. I won't! _

The decision made, Draco stood back up. He pulled his wand out and cast a quick healing spell on his hand - he was almost good enough to be a healer's assistant, he'd had so much practice with healing - and then headed back to the Potions classroom to grab his school books.

Inside the classroom, Draco avoided Professor Snape's questioning gaze, snatching up his things and then heading back to the room that he and Adrian now shared. He didn't feel like attending classes the rest of the day.

Adrian came in after classes were over, looking puzzled. "Draco?" he asked. "What's going on? Professor Snape told me that you said that you thought you knew who our mate was, and then you ran off, and since then you haven't been at any classes..."

"I don't know who our mate is," Draco said roughly, avoiding Adrian's gaze. _I have to lie. I have to lie to him. It's okay, it'll be okay, it'll make things alright between us... and then HE can't have her! He can't have MY Hermione!_

"But then..." Adrian sat down next to Draco and put his arm around Draco. Draco shrugged it off and shoved himself to the other side of the bed. He curled up in a ball, his face covered by his arms.

"Draco, don't lie to me. I can tell when something's wrong. And I can tell that you're lying about our mate. Who is she?"

Draco didn't say anything. _Go away, go away, go away, _he thought, torn between wanting nothing more than to curl up against Adrian for comfort and wanting to hex him so that he'd stay away from Hermione. _Just leave me alone. I have to get control of this._

"Or is it not a she? Is it a he?" Adrian sounded skeptical and worried, and gave a sharp laugh. "Boy, I'd have a lot of fun explaining that one to Mandy, now wouldn't I? Gee, Mandy, I really do love you, it's just that I'm a Veela and actually in love with... oh, I don't know... Crabbe or someone. It's going to be hard enough to explain to her now, but if..."

"I _said, _I_ don't _know who our mate is!" Draco sat straight up, glaring at Adrian. "Now go away!"

Silence hung between them for a moment. Adrian's eyes were blank, revealing nothing. _Oh Merlin, I just yelled at him, he's going to hate me hate me hate me and it's my fault, definitely my fault this time, I couldn't control myself, just like Father always said, weak, always letting me emotions rule me, unlike a true Malfoy, oh Merlin..._

"So that's what you want, is it?" Adrian stood up, mouth tight. He turned away, his shoulders hunched slightly. "Wait a minute..." Adrian turned back around, and this time his eyes were glinting and his lips were pressed into a thin white line. "You know who our mate is. You know who she is! You know who _my _mate is, and you're trying to keep her from me! You want her all to yourself!"  
"No," Draco protested, scooching backwards away from Adrian. He looked up at Adrian, eyes wide. "That's not it, I promise!" A tiny voice in the back of his head protested. _But it is, isn't it? That's part of the reason you aren't telling him - probably more of the reason than you want to admit, isn't it? Adrian wouldn't do that, but you would, wouldn't you? Some brother you are - all Adrian's ever done is be kind to you, even when you didn't deserve it, and now you repay him by-_

"Liar!" Fists clenched, Adrian advanced on Draco. "You want my mate all to yourself, you selfish, greedy bastard! You're trying to steal her from me!"

Draco whimpered, frozen with fear from the pure rage flashing in Adrian's eyes.

"You know, maybe Father's right about everything! I bet you do this all on purpose - trying to play on my feelings and make me feel sorry for you just so you can manipulate me to get what you want! Well, you won't this time! You won't!"

Paralyzed, Draco watched Adrian draw closer. _No no no, please no, don't say that, please, Adrian no... _

"She'll never love _you! _Never!" Adrian punctuated his last word with a slap, knocking Draco's head into the wall with a thud. "You make me sick," he said, stalking back over to his desk. "Get away from me."

Head down, Draco moved slowly, whole body shaking, to the door.

"I - I'm sorry, Adrian," he whispered. When there was no response, he, for the second time in a day, fled.

Author's note two: Pleasedon't hate Adrian? What did you think? Have I lost my touch on the story? Did I mix up some details (because I've forgotten some of how the story was supposed to go, and my notes got lost in a computer crash)? Hate it? Love it? Tell me what you think – and feel free to yell at me for not posting. I am sorry.


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